The Adventures of Sam & Max: Freelance Police

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Not to be confused with The Adventures of Sam.

The Adventures of Sam & Max: Freelance Police
Title card
Genre
  • Police comedy
Created bySteve Purcell
Based onSam & Max
by Steve Purcell
Developed byJ.D Smith
Directed bySteve Whitehouse
Voices of
ComposerJohn Tucker
Country of origin
  • United States
  • Canada
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes13 (24 segments)
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • J.D. Smith
  • Jocelyn Hamilton
Running time22 minutes
Production companyNelvana
Original release
Network
ReleaseOctober 4, 1997 (1997-10-04) –
April 25, 1998 (1998-04-25)

The Adventures of Sam & Max: Freelance Police is an animated television series, based on the Sam & Max comic series by Steve Purcell. The series follows vigilante private investigators Sam, an anthropomorphic dog, and Max, a lagomorph or "hyperkinetic rabbity-thing", as they investigate strange and bizarre cases and confront the criminals responsible.[1]

The show was first aired in October 1997 on Fox Kids in the U.S. and YTV in Canada, producing 13 episodes (with 24 segments) and winning the 1998 Gemini Award for "Best Animated Series" before it was cancelled in April 1998.[2]

Premise[edit]

The series revolves around Sam & Max, the freelance police accepting missions from the mysterious Commissioner, whom they have never seen.[3] The assignments usually lead them into far-off and exotic locales such as the Moon, Mount Olympus, the centre of the Earth or the mutant inhabited waters of Bohunk Lagoon. In between these assignments, the pair also manage to squeeze in fridge-spelunking, time traveling, Bigfoot-hunting and numerous other escapades. There were also holiday-themed episodes, such as visiting a prison on Christmas[4] and delivering an artificial heart on Valentine's Day.

Characters[edit]

  • Sam (voiced by Harvey Atkin) is a 6-foot anthropomorphic canine dog detective dressed in noir-styled suit and hat.
  • Max (voiced by Robert Tinkler) is an easily excitable 3-foot "hyperkinetic rabbity thing".
  • The Commissioner (voiced by Dan Hennessey) is Sam & Max's mysterious agent and only known link to any form of official government body.
  • Darla "The Geek" Gugenheek (voiced by Tracey Moore) is the detectives' personal 12-year-old scientist and laboratory technician, housed in the pair's very own "Sub-Basement of Solitude". She often provides the duo with new gadgets and inventions to aid them on their missions. She is the only main character who does not also appear in the comics.
  • Lorne, The Friend For Life (voiced by Patrick McKenna) is a clingy and over-exuberant fan of Sam & Max, and self-declared "friend for life", who only ends up annoying the duo and getting in the way of them doing their job.

Episodes[edit]

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"The Thing That Wouldn't Stop It"Steve WhitehouseJ. D. SmithOctober 4, 1997 (1997-10-04)
A strange monster living inside The Geek's fridge is attacking people. Sam & Max must find a way to stop it!
2A"The Second Show Ever"Steve WhitehouseJ. D. SmithOctober 11, 1997 (1997-10-11)
Sam & Max show up at a school's Career Day and take the class to space, where they meet an alien who is plotting to destroy the Earth. They try to stop him and look good for the kids.
2B"Max's Big Day"Steve WhitehouseJ. D. SmithOctober 11, 1997 (1997-10-11)
Sam & Max are dropped on an island and the New Guinea Pigs think Max is their 'chosen one'. But Max must say goodbye to Sam... can he really do it?
3A"Bad Day on the Moon"Steve WhitehouseSteve PurcellOctober 18, 1997 (1997-10-18)
Sam and Max travel to the Moon to help rat people handle their roach problem.
Based on the comic Bad Day On The Moon.
3B"They Came from Down There"Steve WhitehouseHugh DuffyOctober 18, 1997 (1997-10-18)
The population of a town has now become a mass of fish-like zombies, thanks to Mack Salmon's plan of Sea Chimp food products.
4A"The Friend for Life"Steve WhitehouseSteve PurcellOctober 25, 1997 (1997-10-25)
Lorne, The Friend for Life, accidentally lets 'The Mad Thespian' get away. So, Lorne takes him hostage to try to force Sam & Max to hang out with him at his twisted fun house.
4B"Dysfunction of the Gods"Steve WhitehouseMarty Isenberg & Robert N. SkirOctober 25, 1997 (1997-10-25)
Zeus & Hera are angry and fighting, and if the Freelance Police don't help them rekindle their love for each other, Sam & Max will age rapidly.
5A"Big Trouble at the Earth's Core"Steve WhitehouseBob ArdielNovember 1, 1997 (1997-11-01)
Sam & Max go to the center of the Earth to stop the mole-men from blowing up the Earth by lowering the core temperature – and help them find dates!
5B"A Glitch in Time"Steve WhitehouseDale SchottNovember 1, 1997 (1997-11-01)
Max obtains a time traveling watch which he and Sam use to alter their own history (back when they were children), causing Sam to have never become a member of the Freelance Police.
6A"That Darn Gator"Steve WhitehouseJamie TathamNovember 8, 1997 (1997-11-08)
Sam & Max try and raise a baby alligator in their deranged life style.
6B"We Drop at Dawn"Steve WhitehouseHugh DuffyNovember 8, 1997 (1997-11-08)
Sam & Max drop into the jungle (Central Park) to look for the Commissioner's keys.
7A"Christmas Bloody Christmas"Steve WhitehouseSteve PurcellDecember 20, 1997 (1997-12-20)
Sam & Max spend Christmas with Sam's grandma at her maximum security prison on Blood Island. But the criminals attempt a jailbreak and the Freelance Police must round them up.
7B"It's Dangly Deever Time"Steve WhitehouseSteve Purcell (Story), Marty Isenberg & Robert N. SkirDecember 20, 1997 (1997-12-20)
After their TV goes out, they try to watch a show on the Geek's antique TV and bring a Howdy Doody-like character to life. But while they are gone, Dangly Deever's evil twin attempts to take over the city.
8A"Aaiiieee Robot"Steve WhitehouseMarty Isenberg & Robert N. SkirFebruary 6, 1998 (1998-02-06)
After stopping a meteor from hitting Earth with the Mega Max 3000 robot, it sits and rusts away. So, they send it to Japan, where it battles a giant baby.
8B"The Glazed McGuffin Affair"Steve WhitehouseBob ArdielFebruary 6, 1998 (1998-02-06)
Sam & Max try to get Kent Standit, who has banned the Freelance Police's favorite snack 'Glazed McGuffins', to change his mind, by forcing him to at least try one.
9A"The Tell Tale Tail"Steve WhitehouseTim BurnsFebruary 13, 1998 (1998-02-13)
A Sam & Max version of Frankenstein. (Max's tail is severed in an accident, and they reanimate it while the doctor also creates a monster! (the tail, that is))
9B"The Trouble with Gary"Steve WhitehouseTracy BernaFebruary 13, 1998 (1998-02-13)
Sam & Max help babysit the child who changes things with his mind, who helps the Freelance Police with stopping crime and learns how to have fun (Sam & Max style).
10A"Tonight We Love"Steve WhitehouseHugh DuffyFebruary 20, 1998 (1998-02-20)
Sam & Max must deliver an artificial heart to the President on Valentine's Day; but the DeSoto is stolen by a loving couple.
10B"The Invaders"Steve WhitehouseMarty Isenberg & Robert N. SkirFebruary 20, 1998 (1998-02-20)
Two tiny aliens are constantly trying to eliminate Sam & Max (and no matter what they do, the Freelance Police can not stop the Invaders)
11A"Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang"Steve WhitehouseHugh DuffyFebruary 27, 1998 (1998-02-27)
Sam & Max must play 007 to stop T.R.U.S.S. leader 'Larvo' and her fast-food minions from releasing an obnoxious tourist virus.
11B"Little Bigfoot"Steve WhitehouseSteve PurcellFebruary 27, 1998 (1998-02-27)
The Freelance Police save a kid sasquatch from being a bus boy and try to send it into the wild with its own kind.
12A"Fools Die on Friday"Steve WhitehouseJamie TathamApril 18, 1998 (1998-04-18)
Sam & Max attempt to foil a blimp hijacking aimed to crash into The Statue of Liberty, only to find the demented terrorist is Lorne, the Friend for Life.
12B"Sam & Max vs. the Uglions"Steve WhitehouseTim Burns & J. D. SmithApril 18, 1998 (1998-04-18)
Aliens open a new restaurant, "The Frying Saucer", that serves people (no really, it's people!). Sam & Max must stop the aliens before the US government start a nuclear holocaust to try to stop the aliens.
13"The Final Episode"Steve WhitehouseJ. D. SmithApril 25, 1998 (1998-04-25)
A group of villains from past episodes, led by Mack Salmon try to kill Sam & Max by strapping them to a bomb and dropping them into a volcano. They attempt to get free and subdue the bad guys, all while reliving flashbacks of their early life.

Telecast and media releases[edit]

The Adventures of Sam & Max: Freelance Police was first aired in October 1997 on Fox Kids in the U.S., but was cancelled in April 1998 and was replaced by The Secret Files of the Spy Dogs. In Canada, it also aired on YTV.

Selected episodes from the show had been released in three separate compilations on VHS by Sullivan Entertainment. The episodes included in the VHS compilations are as follows:

The Y Files All Creatures Great and Small Come Fly With Me
  • "Sam & Max vs. the Uglions"
  • "The Invaders"
  • "They Came from Down There"
  • "The Trouble with Gary"
  • "The Thing That Wouldn't Stop It"
  • "The Second Show Ever"
  • "The Tell Tale Tail"
  • "Big Trouble at the Earth's Core"
  • "That Darn Gator"
  • "Little Bigfoot"
  • "Max's Big Day"
  • "Dysfunction of the Gods"
  • "We Drop at Dawn"
  • "Bad Day on the Moon"
  • "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang"
  • "Aaiiieee Robot"

In March 2008, the complete series was released by Shout! Factory. Features include original case art by Steve Purcell, three 'educational' shorts, an interview with Purcell, a short featurette about Telltale Games, an art gallery, an "Original Series Bible", a Flash-based cartoon titled 'Our Bewildering Universe' and a playable demo of Ice Station Santa. A sticker of the Sam & Max title card was also included.

GameTap released one episode from the show each week on GameTap TV in October 2006, as a promotion for Telltale Games' Sam & Max: Season One.[5] Their schedule includes a release of every episode, appearing out of order. Up until mid-July 2008 all episodes (except "Fools Die on Friday") were available to watch online at GameTap for free until the GameTap TV section was shut down as part of a site redesign.[6][7]

As of 2022, the show is now streaming on Tubi and Pluto TV.[8][9]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Perlmutter, David (2018). The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 526. ISBN 978-1-5381-0373-9.
  2. ^ "13th Geminis "Best Animated Program or Series" results". Canada's Awards Database. Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television. Archived from the original on February 4, 2012. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
  3. ^ Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 707–708. ISBN 978-1-4766-6599-3.
  4. ^ Crump, William D. (2019). Happy Holidays—Animated! A Worldwide Encyclopedia of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and New Year's Cartoons on Television and Film. McFarland & Co. pp. 48–49. ISBN 978-1-4766-7293-9.
  5. ^ Hagerup, Eivind (October 11, 2006). "Sam & Max animated series heading for GameTap". Adventure Gamers. Retrieved October 15, 2006.
  6. ^ [1][permanent dead link]
  7. ^ "TV Series". Sam & Max. Retrieved March 1, 2022.
  8. ^ "Sam & Max". Tubi. Retrieved December 22, 2023.
  9. ^ Sam and Max on Pluto TV | Season 1 | TV-G, retrieved December 22, 2023

External links[edit]

Wikiquote has quotations related to Sam & Max.
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